Mastering Indirect Questions

Making Indirect Questions

Have a look at this conversation.

Me: Excuse me. Could you tell me where the nearest station is?

Person in the street: Certainly. It's along that road on the right.

Me: Thank you. And do you know if there's a supermarket near here?

Person in the street: Yes, there's one next to the station.

Me: Thank you very much for your help.

What are indirect questions?

• Indirect questions are a way of asking questions without using a direct question form. Example of direct question:

  Present: Where do you train basketball?

  Past: Why were you at the office on a Sunday?

Reorder

First, order this words to make a direct (normal) question:

• does

• she

• drive

• to work

• ?

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Reorder

Order this words to make a direct (normal) question:

speak/ can/ she/ English/ ?

• Can

• she

• speak

• English

• well?

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Reorder

Order this words to make a direct (normal) question:

he/ is/ why/ leaving/

• Why

• is

• he

• leaving

• ?

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

​An indirect question is a different type of question

• We use them in more formal or polite situations or when we don't know the person we're going to ask.

• Example of indirect questions.

  Can you tell me where you train basketball?

  I wonder why you were at the office on a Sunday?

Multiple Choice

What are indirect questions used for?

• To ask questions without auxiliaries

• To express formal or polite inquiries

• To avoid using direct questions

Indirect Questions

Trivia: Indirect questions are used to express formal or polite inquiries. They help improve communication skills and sound more polite and professional.

I’d like to know...

I want to find out....

I wonder....

Note: If you start with a statement, end the sentence with a period instead of a question mark.

Example: I wonder what time it is.

​A statement

Do you have any idea....?

Can you tell me......?

Do you know.....?

​A question

Indirect questions start with a phrase that can be:

Open Ended

Which phrases can you use to start an indirect question?

Making Indirect Questions

• After we introduce the questions with phrases like 'I wonder', 'Could you tell me', or 'Do you know'.

• They are followed by the word order of a statement (or positive sentence) not a question.

• Example:

  Direct question: Where did you find that sweater?
  Indirect question: Could you tell me where you found that sweater?

  Answer: I found it at H&M.

More examples of indirect questions: Present simple

Direct question: Is he happy?
Indirect question: I wonder if he is happy.

Direct question: When does the bus leave?
Indirect question: Can you tell me when the bus leaves?

Direct question: Why do you exercise at nights?
Indirect question: I want to find out why you exercise at nights?

More examples of indirect questions: Past simple

Direct question: Was Samuel at the party?
Indirect question: I wonder if Samuel was at the party?

Direct question: Did he visit London last year?
Indirect question: Do you know if he visited Paris last year?

Direct question: Why did you arrive so late?
Indirect question: I want to find out why you arrived so late.

Let's practice

Change the direct questions into indirect questions. Use 'can you tell me'.

Where does she play tennis?

Do you live in Paris?

Is she hungry?

What is this?

Reorder

Reordenar lo siguiente

• I'd like to know

• where

• you

• bought

• your tickets

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Reorder

Reordenar lo siguiente

• I

• wonder

• when

• Ronald

• died

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Reorder

Reordenar lo siguiente

• Can you

• tell me

• where

• the station

• is

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Reorder

Reordenar lo siguiente

• Could you tell me

• why

• you

• are

• angry

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Fill in the Blanks

Fill in the Blanks

Let's practice

Change the direct questions into indirect questions. Use 'can you tell me'.

1. Did she go out last night?

2. Where did she meet her brother?

3. How was the film?

Now, let's do some solo practice

Work on the exercise provided by your teacher.

In summary:

• Indirect questions are used to be more polite or formal

• They are formed by using question words like 'if', 'whether', 'what', 'where', etc.

• They have the word order of a positive sentence.

• Using indirect questions improves your communication skills